Workplace Bullying, Public Humiliation, and How Employees Can Respond

Workplace retreats, team meetings, and company social events are often intended to improve collaboration. However, when a manager uses these settings to embarrass, belittle, or single out an employee, the event can reinforce a harmful workplace culture rather than strengthen it. Public jokes about a person’s body, age, clothing, appearance, or perceived abilities are not harmless team-building. They can undermine dignity, affect mental wellbeing, and make employees afraid to speak up.

Stories of employees being mocked by supervisors resonate because they reflect a broader problem: workplace bullying can be subtle, repeated, and normalized over time. It may appear as sarcastic remarks during meetings, exclusion from professional opportunities, humiliating comments in front of colleagues, or dismissive responses when someone raises concerns. Although legal definitions vary by country and jurisdiction, organizations have a clear responsibility to create workplaces where people are treated fairly and respectfully.

What Workplace Bullying Can Look Like

Workplace bullying generally refers to repeated, unreasonable behavior directed at a worker or group of workers that creates a risk to health, safety, or wellbeing. Unlike ordinary workplace conflict, bullying often involves a pattern of conduct and an imbalance of power. A manager may have authority over schedules, pay, performance reviews, assignments, promotions, and access to professional opportunities, making it more difficult for an employee to challenge inappropriate behavior.

Examples may include persistent ridicule, offensive nicknames, insulting comments about physical appearance, public criticism that is not constructive, deliberately withholding important information, setting impossible deadlines, or making degrading remarks during meetings. Conduct can also target protected characteristics, such as sex, age, disability, race, religion, or national origin. In those cases, the behavior may raise additional concerns under employment discrimination or harassment laws.

A single inappropriate comment may not always meet a legal threshold for harassment, but it can still violate company policy and damage trust. When comments become recurring, are tolerated by leaders, or are used to isolate an employee, the effects can become more serious. Coworkers may laugh nervously, remain silent, or avoid intervening because they fear becoming the next target. This silence can make harmful behavior seem acceptable even when many people privately recognize that it is wrong.

Why Public Humiliation Is Harmful at Work

Public humiliation can have consequences beyond an uncomfortable moment. Employees who are repeatedly mocked may experience stress, reduced confidence, sleep problems, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, or a loss of motivation. They may stop contributing ideas, avoid meetings, use sick leave more frequently, or decide to leave the organization. These outcomes can affect both the individual and the employer.

Research and workplace guidance consistently emphasize the importance of psychological safety: an environment in which people believe they can speak, ask questions, admit mistakes, and raise concerns without fear of ridicule or punishment. When a supervisor makes someone the subject of a joke, employees may conclude that speaking honestly carries a personal risk. This can prevent teams from identifying errors, reporting misconduct, or challenging poor decisions.

Body-based jokes are particularly damaging because they can reinforce stigma and discrimination. A person’s weight, shape, age, or appearance has no legitimate connection to their professional worth. Comments framed as “just jokes” may still be humiliating, especially when they come from a manager with power over the employee’s career. Respectful workplaces focus on performance, job responsibilities, and constructive feedback rather than personal characteristics.

The Importance of Bystanders and Colleagues

Employees who witness workplace bullying may feel unsure about what to do. Some worry that speaking up could create conflict or affect their own standing. Yet bystanders can play an important role in changing workplace culture. A simple response, such as refusing to laugh, redirecting the conversation, checking on the targeted colleague, or documenting what was said, can communicate that disrespectful behavior is not normal.

Support does not always require a dramatic confrontation. A coworker can privately tell the affected employee that they observed the incident and are willing to provide a factual account if needed. They can encourage the person to review company reporting options, contact human resources, or seek advice from an employee assistance program, union representative, or trusted manager.

When several employees have experienced similar conduct, independent and fact-based accounts can help an organization understand whether the issue is isolated or part of a larger pattern. Employees should focus on what they personally saw or heard, avoid exaggeration, and preserve relevant evidence where permitted by workplace policy and local law.

How Employees Can Document Workplace Concerns

Documentation can be useful when an employee believes they are being bullied, harassed, or treated unfairly. A clear record helps people remember dates and details accurately, especially if incidents happen over months or years. Documentation may also help human resources, legal advisers, union representatives, or external agencies assess a complaint.

A practical incident log can include the date, time, location, people present, exact words or actions, and any relevant follow-up. Employees may also retain work-related emails, messages, meeting invitations, performance records, or written feedback that support their account. It is important to store information securely and to follow employer rules about confidential information, customer records, and company systems.

Workers should avoid secretly recording conversations unless they understand the laws in their location. Recording rules differ widely, and unauthorized recordings may create legal or workplace-policy issues. When in doubt, employees can seek guidance from a qualified employment lawyer, union, worker advocacy organization, or relevant government labor agency.

Reporting a Manager’s Inappropriate Conduct

Many employers have formal procedures for reporting harassment, discrimination, retaliation, or misconduct. These may involve a direct manager, a more senior leader, human resources, an ethics hotline, a compliance office, or an external reporting service. If the concern involves an employee’s direct supervisor, the employee should generally use an alternative reporting channel listed in the organization’s policy.

When making a report, it is often helpful to be specific. Rather than stating only that a manager is “mean” or “unprofessional,” an employee can describe the conduct: what was said, when it occurred, who heard it, how often it has happened, and how it affected their ability to work. A focused report gives the organization information it can investigate.

Employers should respond promptly and fairly. A credible investigation typically includes interviews with the reporting employee, the accused person, and relevant witnesses, along with a review of available documents. Organizations should avoid pre-judging the outcome while also taking reasonable steps to prevent further harm during the process. Depending on the situation, interim measures may include changes to reporting structures, work assignments, meeting arrangements, or contact between the parties.

Retaliation Concerns After Raising a Complaint

Employees may worry that reporting misconduct will lead to retaliation. Retaliation can include demotion, reduced hours, exclusion from projects, unfair performance criticism, threats, or other negative actions taken because someone raised a concern or participated in an investigation. In many jurisdictions, retaliation related to discrimination or harassment complaints is prohibited.

Workers who believe they are experiencing retaliation should document the changes, report them through available channels, and seek advice quickly. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, for example, identifies retaliation as a significant issue in employment discrimination enforcement. Laws and deadlines differ by location, so people should consult the relevant labor authority or an employment-law professional for guidance tailored to their circumstances.

What Responsible Employers Should Do

Employers cannot create a respectful culture through policies alone. Leaders must model appropriate conduct, respond consistently to concerns, and avoid treating workplace respect as an optional extra. A manager who humiliates staff at a retreat, in a meeting, or online can cause lasting damage to trust, morale, and retention.

Effective prevention programs often include clear anti-harassment and anti-bullying policies, regular training, accessible reporting options, meaningful investigations, and consequences for misconduct. Training should not be limited to a checklist. It should help managers recognize power dynamics, give feedback without humiliation, interrupt inappropriate behavior, and understand their responsibility when someone raises a concern.

Company events deserve the same standards as the office. Whether an event takes place at a hotel, restaurant, conference center, sports venue, or recreational facility, employees should not be pressured into situations that compromise their comfort, privacy, or dignity. Attendance expectations should be reasonable, accommodations should be considered when appropriate, and managers should never use a social setting as an opportunity to target or embarrass employees.

Leaving a Harmful Workplace and Moving Forward

Some employees decide that the healthiest option is to seek a new role. Leaving can be a thoughtful professional decision, particularly when an employer fails to address repeated mistreatment or when trust has been seriously damaged. Before resigning, workers may wish to consider their financial circumstances, employment contract, benefits, references, and the potential value of obtaining professional advice.

A new job can offer a fresh start, but the experience of bullying may take time to process. Support from family, friends, mental health professionals, career advisers, or employee assistance services can be valuable. People should not blame themselves for another person’s inappropriate behavior. Professional competence is not defined by a manager’s insults or by an organization’s failure to intervene.

Ultimately, respectful workplaces depend on shared accountability. Employees should be able to contribute without being mocked. Colleagues should not have to choose between their own safety and supporting someone who is being treated unfairly. Managers should understand that authority is a responsibility, not permission to demean others. When employees, witnesses, and organizations respond to harmful conduct with clarity and care, workplace culture can begin to change.

Sources

• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: Harassment
• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: Retaliation
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration: Workplace Violence Prevention Resources
• CDC/NIOSH: Work-Related Stress
• World Health Organization: Mental Health at Work
• ACAS: Bullying at Work